When Will Democrats Admit That Their Anti-Israel Rhetoric Has Gone Too Far?

The GOP has unequivocally condemned the increase in antisemitic attacks taking place in cities across the country and have called out inappropriate rhetoric in their own party. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the Democrat Party which has allowed anti-Israel rhetoric to proliferate within its ranks despite its connection to the increase in violence. The rise in antisemitic attacks comes in the broader context of generally higher violent crime rates in cities that have voted to reduce funding for law enforcement over the last year. 

Prominent members of the Democrat Party have doubled down on their anti-Israel rhetoric despite the increase in Jewish people across the country being violently targeted. This has come without public condemnation from party leadership.

As Seffi Kogen, the Global Director of Young Leadership at the American Jewish Committee, wrote for Newsweek, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is one of the worst offenders:

While anti-Zionist gangs beat up Jews in her city, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was providing a quasi-intellectual basis for their actions, defaming Israel as an apartheid state employing indiscriminate force in what she seems to think is a capricious quest to murder as many Palestinian children as possible, instead of a highly restrained military operation tightly targeted on terrorists.

Rep. Ocasio-Cortez didn't call for violence, but she carved out an area of respectability for a certain type of anti-Semitism, and others were only too happy to rush in, fists flying.

It turns out, if you ignore all evidence, turn Israel into the villain in your morality play, and insist that Americans have a "responsibility" to do something about Israel, the thing that they will do is beat up American Jews, throw rocks through the windows of American synagogues, and harass Jews who try to speak up on social media.

It is important to note that the term, "anti-Zionism," can be used as a cover for antisemitism, but many "anti-Zionists" aren't even trying to hide their true motives anymore. (The Anti-Defamation League defines anti-Zionism as, "prejudice against the Jewish movement for self-determination and the right of the Jewish people to a homeland in the State of Israel.")

The Democrat Party will continue to blame the inflammatory rhetoric on elected officials going rogue, but the Democrat machine is anti-Israel to its core. Just look at who they hire:

Leader Mitch McConnell and Senator Tom Cotton have announced that they will introduce legislation that would give law enforcement and the justice system more resources to fight antisemitism. Leader McConnell explained:

“This trash should be the easiest thing in the world for every person in a leadership position to call out.

“But, perhaps because Israel has become a strangely controversial issue on the far left, the condemnations do not seem to be flowing quite as easily and unequivocally as they should.

“Yesterday a Democratic Congressman from Minnesota tweeted this: ‘I’ll say the quiet part out loud. It’s time for “progressives” to start condemning anti-Semitism and violent attacks on Jewish people with the same intention and vigor demonstrated in other areas of activism. The silence has been deafening.’ I couldn’t say it better myself.

“Senator Cotton and I are introducing new legislation to fight anti-Semitism. Our bill will support state and local law enforcement and ensure the bigoted thugs who are attacking Jewish Americans face the full force of our justice system.

Additionally, Senator Josh Hawley and several other Republicans are urging the Senate to adopt a resolution condemning the recent attacks:

“The sickening rise in anti-Semitic attacks in the United States and around the world must end, along with the hateful anti-Israel rhetoric from politicians and the media that inspires the violence.We must ensure that Jewish people receive the full protection of law owed to them as citizens of the United States." 

Senator Josh Hawley

“At a moment when Jews are literally under attack in the streets of our nation, Jewish Americans need to know that Congress is on their side. This resolution provides an opportunity for our elected leaders to take a stand against antisemitism and against the demonization of Israel that fuels it,” said Matt Brooks, Executive Director of the Republican Jewish Coalition.

The RNLA strongly condemns the antisemitic attacks against Jewish Americans which have no place in a society that values the freedom to exercise religion without fear of persecution, the rule of law, and the equality and value of all people.